Cheaters Never Prosper
| Next = | Episode list = Season 1 }} The Major Crimes Division gets involved in the case of a murdered police officer and an identity theft ring. At the same time, Rusty is set to spend a weekend with his biological father who's behavior has Raydor increasingly worried. The Victim * Michael V. "Mike" Adams, a Detective with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD). Adams had served with the LVMPD for ten years and has been assigned to the Fraud Unit for the past three. Partnered with Det. Richard Conner. The Suspects * Laura Elkins, the victim had conducted three searches on her through the DMV. Currently lives in Silver Lake, is married and has two children. No criminal record. * Dr. Jeremy Durban, full name Jeremy Thomas Durban Jr. Identity stolen as the real Dr. Durban teaches in Montana. Has multiple other identities, some of which are wanted in other states for fraud. Evidence * Car keys in the victim's pocket but no wallet. * Mike Adams' official LVMPD vehicle, containing his badge, duty weapon, wallet, ID, two keys to a hotel room, $128 in cash, and a few business cards. * Victim's stomach contents which contained ethylene glycol (antifreeze). * DMV searches of Laura Elkins. * Victim's missing cell phone. * Laura Elkins' stolen laptop. * Several laptops stolen from Las Vegas hotels stolen by older teens. ** 16 of these laptops were later used in a big identity theft scheme. ** All of the computers were later stripped of parts and disposed of. * Several flash drives recovered from Dr. Jeremy Durban. Plot Starting the Investigation The Major Crimes Division was called to a nightclub after the club bouncer found a dead man in the bathroom after closing time. The victim had vomited all over himself and the bathroom stall, giving Kendall a lot of extra work as he had to scoop it all up as evidence. Kendall found car keys in the victim's pocket, indicating that he had not used the valet service. Lt. Flynn gave the keys to Det. Sanchez and ordered him to go look for the car, as he though it might be parked nearby. When the annoyed Lt. Provenza arrived, he wanted to know why they had been called in at 3:30 AM. Flynn told him that it was because the club owner, rather than calling 9-1-1, had actually called his "good friend Chief of Police William Henry Pope." Lt. Tao noted that the club bouncer had however called for an ambulance and the paramedics pronounced the victim dead at 2:25 AM. This led Provenza to wonder why the body was still in the bathroom a full hour later, and Flynn explained to him that in order to do a proper alcohol-consumption test, they need the man's stomach contents, a lot of which is on the floor waiting for Kendall to collect it. Provenza concluded that even if the victim had drank himself to death, they have to handle it like a murder until proven otherwise. At this point, Det. Sykes arrived to brief Provenza on what the club staff had seen but was cut short by Provenza, as Flynn had a wondering look on him and he wanted to know what his "problem" was. Flynn explained that the victim had no wounds on him and looked to be physically in great shape, stating that he'd been there before but had always got up (referencing his previous alcoholism), and also wondered why the bartenders hadn't refused to serve him if he was very drunk. At this point, Sykes tells them that only one bartender remembers seeing their victim when he stumbled up to a stool a few hours before last call but even then he didn't order anything. This of course doesn't mean that someone else wasn't buying him drinks. Sanchez then arrives, telling them that maybe the victim's partner was the one ordering the drinks, leading to Provenza ask him if he means the victim was gay. What Sanchez meant was that the victim was a cop, a Detective from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD). The victim's name was Michael V. Adams, Sanchez had found his official vehicle parked out front with his personal belongings. Tao notes that there were 400 people in the club and the one man that dies happens to be a police detective, which Provenza thinks can't be a coincidence. Tao then leaves to call the LVMPD in order to notify them of the death. Sykes wonders because the victim had been driving his official vehicle if he had been on duty, which makes Flynn question where his partner is and why they hadn't checked in with the LAPD, though Provenza states to Flynn that they've been to Las Vegas multiple times on business and that they never notified the LVMPD either. Working the Case Provenza and Flynn then go to the the morgue, where Dr. Morales, after examining the victim's stomach contents, comes to the conclusion that the victim had only had a few drinks about six hours before his death but the cause of death was actually ethylene glycol poisoning (antifreeze, as Flynn puts it), meaning that the detective was murdered. Provenza asks Flynn how he knew ethylene glycol was antifreeze, Flynn tells him that when people stop drinking they throw out all the alcohol. Then, when they get the urge to drink again, they sneak out into the garage and strain the antifreeze thinking it'll be okay to drink and then they end up dead. He states that it's not a bad way to poison someone, with Morales telling them that it apparently tastes sweet and could mix very well with a mojito, for instance. Back at the PAB, the squad regroups to give Capt. Raydor a briefing; Tao informs them that the victim's partner, Det. Richard Conner, didn't think he was working on a case and was surprised he was in LA in the first place as he has no friends or family there. The victim, Det. Adams, was a 10-year veteran of the LVMPD and had worked at the Fraud Unit for the past three years with quite a few open cases (Tao humorously tells the squad that they'd be surprised to learn that Las Vegas has a lot of scams). Sykes informs Raydor that during her search of the victim's hotel room, she found DMV searches for a Laura Elkins who currently lives in Silver Lake with her husband and two kids, and has no criminal record. Det. Adams had searched her info three times in the past two months. Sykes had called her in for a meeting at the PAB but she reportedly doesn't know why. Raydor wanted to know if Adams had met or spoken to Mrs. Elkins while he was in LA, to which Buzz reports that if he had, it hadn't happened at the hotel. Raydor then turned her attention to the victim's cell phone, which was missing as it wasn't on him, in his car, or at the hotel. Tao pinged the phone but got no results, meaning it was either turned off or the battery was dead. Sykes then continued with her findings at the hotel, telling Raydor that the victim only had an overnight bag but the victim did have two keys and the room had a king-size bed, suggesting that maybe he planned on having company over. Provenza noted that two keys was standard even if only one person was checking in but Sykes further informed him that she found condoms in the room, to which Provenza once again retorted that Det. Adams was single and that "the boy scouts aren't the only ones who like to be prepared." Flynn did note afterwards that Adams wasn't prepared, as he had went into a bar and wound up dead in a bathroom, something he probably didn't intend to do. He also drove in his official vehicle, had his gun and badge with him, and had at least one person he wanted to talk to, indicating that it was official police business. This begs the question that how doesn't his partner know about it, which Raydor agrees to that it doesn't add up. After this, Tao told the squad that without him even asking, Det. Adams' partner, Conner, volunteered to put all their cases that had even the smallest link to LA in his car and drive them to LA, and he should be arriving any minute now. Later, Laura Elkins arrived at the PAB with her children. Flynn notes to Raydor that Laura doesn't seem to be expecting any bad news but he'd like to try to find out why Adams was so interested in her before they tell her about his murder. Also at this point, Det. Conner arrives and Provenza goes to meet him at the elevators. Raydor requests that Provenza takes him to the electronics room afterwards in order to observe Mrs. Elkins' interview to see if he recognizes her. At the interview, right after Flynn had introduced himself and Raydor to Elkins, she asks them if this visit means they had found her laptop which was apparently stolen from her hotel in Las Vegas. When Flynn asked her if she reported the theft to LVMPD, she said that of course she did and told them that she thought that is why they called her in. She further explained that LVMPD sent out a "very nice" Detective Adams who looked for her laptop all over the place and then talked to her about how not to become a victim of identity theft. Flynn then asked if Adams ever followed up with her, which he apparently did, several times. Det. Adams was apparently convinced that someone was going to use the information on her computer to establish a line of credit based on her home equity. She told them that Adams had told her he and his partner had been investigating a lot of cases just like hers. Adams had also told her that the thieves were dangerous, which was scary for her. Flynn also wanted Elkins to sign some forms which would allow the LAPD to monitor her finances, which she agreed to do gleefully. In electronics, Det. Conner told Provenza, Tao, and Buzz that he didn't think the thieves were that dangerous and gave them the case files relating to what Elkins was talking about, and noted that he personally had never seen Elkins before. Tao asked him if he could think of any reason why Adams didn't tell him about the case, which he couldn't. Moving to the murder room, Conner filled the squad on their case: approximately nine months ago, several Las Vegas hotels reported that laptops had been stolen. They later cought some of the thefts using hotel surveillance footage. All their suspects appeared to be older teens but never looked the same way twice. 16 of the stolen laptops were later used in a big identity theft scheme that looked to be based in LA. Flynn then wanted to know why it was Connor who brought down the case files and not Adams, even though it was Adams who was working the case. Conner told Flynn once again that he doesn't know, afterwhich Flynn wanted to know why Adams didn't inform the LAPD that he was in their jurisdiction conducting an investigation, to which Conner noted that they had called the LAPD ten times in the last year and every time they mentioned identity theft or credit fraud, the person they were talking to practically had hung up on them. Conner continued his briefing, stating that LVMPD had contacted all the credit agencies about their victims and they had set up spreadsheets tracking all of their financial accounts. Tao then pitched in, stating that the thieves mined all of the identities for a few months before taking loans out in their names, after which they invested the illegally borrowed money in overseas funds. Tao then recaps the case, stating that the thieves kept up regular payments on all the improper loans they took out, which amount to about $12 million. Sanchez then asks if it is even theft if the thieves are paying back the loans and making money for the victims, to which Connor states that at some point the thieves will withdraw the investment income and make off with everything they borrowed. Sykes guesses that they probably do that right before the IRS sends the victims their 1099's. Connor agrees and states that they have until then to find out who is behind the thefts. Flynn states that Det. Adams may have already done that and that is the reason he is dead. Connor states to Flynn that maybe that is the reason Adams is dead but as he is not the homicide expert, Flynn is, but when it comes to investigating identity fraud he tries not to jump to conclusions, giving Flynn the same antagonistic attitude he has shown Connor during the entire investigation. Closing the Case While texting with Rusty, Raydor gets an idea and calls Tao and Flynn. As the accounts the identity thieves are using have their own separate email addresses and post office boxes attached to them, Raydor suggests sending an email to each that the LAPD believes they might be the victims of fraud. She figures that it might cause the thieves to panic and move the money into one big account which they may be able to track. They will then freeze the money so that the thieves can't get it back afterwards. Detective Connor is displeased with this move, but it works: monitoring the accounts credit reports, they detect the money being moved into one account under the name of Doctor Jeremy Durban, Professor of Economics at Santa Monica University and not one of the identity theft victims. Believing Durban to be behind the identity theft and Detective Adams' murder, Sykes goes undercover as someone looking for investment information and gives him an iPad running a fingerprint identification program. Using Durban's fingerprints, Tao discovers he has at least four other names, at least one of which has a criminal record for fraud. Flynn figures that the teenagers who stole the victims' laptops were probably Durban's students and decides to arrest him despite Julio's disbelief that Durban would be involved in a murder or visiting the bar that Adams was found at. After receiving the order, Sykes gleefully arrests Durban for Adams' murder as he was annoying her. Durban, who has driver's licenses with 30 different names at his apartment alone, waives his right to an attorney, insisting that he didn't commit murder or fraud as he never stole any money from any of the people he took the identities from and paid back every loan he got in their names. When he points out that they can check the credit report to confirm that, Raydor realizes that a person's credit report is the only way to track identity fraud and that Laura Elkins' wasn't in the case files that Connor gave them despite Adams continually running her driver's license, they had to ask for her permission to check her finances. Checking the flash drives they recovered from Durban, they discover Elkins' stolen information isn't among them causing Connor to quickly tell them that he never said Elkins was part of the identity theft case and they jumped to their own conclusions. Raydor and Flynn pull him aside, enraged that he lied about the case and used them to solve it while knowing full well the identity theft had nothing to do with the murder. After Raydor threatens to call LVMPD Internal Affairs, Connor finally starts to cooperate: Adams had a habit of having affairs with the victims he interviewed and if they gave him even some kind of glimmer of hope, he'd stalk them. Elkins was his type and he had a complaint filed against him seven months earlier. It becomes apparent that Adams stalked Elkins to her home in LA, something Connor says is new and means that Adams' behavior was escalating. As Raydor asks whether or not there were any other women in LA Adams might've been stalking, Flynn notices a problem on Elkins credit report: despite telling them her laptop was vital for her business, Elkins has not replaced it since she reported it stolen and neither has any of her family bought anything that cost over $200, indicating that the computer hasn't been replaced by them either. Flynn and Raydor bring Elkins in for questioning while the police search her house and locate her supposedly stolen laptop on her desk where it should be. Confronted with the evidence of her lie, Elkins breaks down and tells her story to Raydor and Flynn who pretend to be sympathetic: she met Adams when she was at a hotel in Las Vegas and left her laptop downstairs. Adams returned it to her and warned her about the identity theft ring and how she might be in danger from it. They had what she thought would be a one-night stand but he began stalking her afterwards, calling and texting all the time and then showing up at her house and telling her husband and children he was worried she might be part of the case. Adams refused to leave her alone and demanded she meet him at the bar. When he refused to back off, she dosed two of his drinks with antifreeze. Flynn arrests her for premeditated murder and before they take her to see the DDA to make a deal, Raydor warns her to stop talking before she talks her way onto death row. As they can't prove that Durban intended to permanently deprive his victims of the money he stole, the squad turns him over to Connor to face the identity theft charges in Nevada and he requests they not be too hard on his students that stole the laptops as they just did it for good grades. Although they speculate that Durban might get away with the charges in Nevada too, he is wanted in five other states so he will likely get charged with something that will stick. They also hope to one day learn his real name as Durban is just another alias. Guest Cast * Sprague Grayden (Laura Elkins) * Michael Rodrick (LVMPD Detective Richard Conner) * Eric Lange (Dr. Jeremy Durban) * Michael Harris (LVMPD Detective Mike Adams) * Ronnie Tyrone Lee (Club Bouncer) Recurring * Ian Bohen (Daniel Dunn, Rusty's biological father.) * Ransford Doherty (Coroner's Investigator Kendall) Locations Episode Notes * When talking with Sharon Raydor at the end of the episode, Rusty Beck tells her more about his abandonment at the zoo by his mother's boyfriend and the abuse he suffered at the man's hands. This is further explored in the five-part "Hindsight" arc when both Sharon Beck and her ex-boyfriend Gary Lewis return to Rusty's life. * While Sharon is texting Rusty, her phone gives the date as October 6th. Trivia Episode Media Category:Major Crimes Category:MC Season 1 Category:Episodes